


Nebulous

by rae_marie



Series: The Renegades of Cosmic Magic [3]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio)
Genre: Gen, blair kenneth verse, wow i'm really wearing my taz influences on my sleeve in this one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-23 03:44:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18541603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rae_marie/pseuds/rae_marie
Summary: A machine....two Time Lords....a human....and a magic sword....what could possibly go wrong?





	Nebulous

_ While the Doctor and Ace were flying away from the planet after saving it from the Time Lords, another renegade was sailing through the Vortex with his companion.  _

_ The two of them had met on the planet Earth when the renegade was working undercover at the companion’s school. Together, they had stopped a dangerous Time Lord from magically resurrecting a long-extinct species of dinosaur, but due to the Web of Time, the child could no longer stay on Earth, and so she had headed for the stars with her new friend. They encountered many perils along the way, some they felt exceptionally lucky to have survived, but always…. _ always _ they stayed with each other through thick and thin. They learned quite a bit from each other, but most importantly, they were the best of friends.  _

_ The Time Lord’s name was the Master, and the child’s name was Blair.  _

*****

Blair walked over to the console as the TARDIS landed, her cape trailing behind her, almost touching the ground, but not quite. She and the Master had had to shorten it when she first was chosen by it; she kept tripping on the hem, and that wasn’t very practical when you were always on the run from angry aliens out to get you. 

She looked at the scanner. ‘Where are we?’ she asked. 

‘Sentra Nine.’ The Master frowned and looked at the scanner as well. ‘I am not  _ entirely _ certain what is happening here, but I am afraid it is most definitely related to the Taft Machine.’ 

Blair’s jaw dropped. ‘I thought we sorted all that out a long time ago!’ she cried. 

‘Mm, indeed; however it appears that through some manner of meddling in the timelines, the Machine has reappeared. It would be best to put an end to it now, before it can do any more damage.’ 

‘Still can’t believe a human was able to replicate Gallifreyan magic,’ Blair said quietly.

‘Ah, but it is rather primitive. It is not  _ quite _ as fine-tuned as the magic of the Time Lords, which, as we have witnessed, makes it all the more dangerous.’ 

Blair looked up at him. ‘What are we gonna do with it?’ she asked. 

‘Retrieve it as quickly as possible, then destroy it. Don’t worry, Blair; if I am tempted by its powers in the least, I will hand it to you immediately.’ 

‘’Kay.’ She frowned. ‘Have you figured out yet why I’m immune to its draw?’ 

The Master shook his head. ‘No….I have not.’

Blair slipped her hand into his, and he gave it a reassuring squeeze. 

‘Shall we go?’ he asked. Blair nodded, and he reached for the door switch. 

*****

A cluster of buildings stood in the distance. Everything was quiet when they stepped outside; Blair thought it a little unsettling. She and the Master walked for a long time without saying anything, until Blair could bear it no more. 

‘Where  _ is _ everyone….?’ she whispered. 

‘I am not certain,’ the Master said. ‘I only hope we have not arrived too late.’ 

Blair shivered and pulled her cape a little closer around her shoulders. It was comforting, especially since it was so warm. 

In a few minutes, they’d reached the cluster of buildings, and it was just as silent there as it had been before. 

‘Did the Machine do this?’ Blair whispered. 

‘I am not certain….but I suppose it is a possibility.’ 

Blair looked around. Nothing seemed out of place, yet nothing seemed  _ in _ place, either. 

Something down an alleyway caught her eye. She squinted, trying to see it more distinctly, and gasped. 

‘ _ Master! _ ’ she whispered. He pulled up short and she pointed. ‘There’s someone down there, and he’s in funny robes - I think it’s a Time Lord!’ 

The Master frowned, and looked in the direction Blair was pointing. He obviously saw what Blair was seeing; his expression went from a frown to what Blair recognised as the ‘I am not amused’ face. 

_ We have to stop him _ , Blair thought to the Master. 

_ I know. We shall _ . 

Silently, they made their way towards the opening of the alley. 

*****

They followed the Time Lord down several side roads, until they finally came to one that was a dead end. 

_ Oh, no _ , Blair thought, but it was too late. The Time Lord turned around to go back, and saw them. 

They stared at each other for a moment, then the Time Lord bolted, rushing straight for them.

Almost reflexively, Blair flicked her wrists at him, bringing him to an abrupt halt as he stumbled into the glowing wall of stardust. It quickly surrounded him, and he froze, wide-eyed.

‘Who are you?’ he barked. ‘What do you want? I’m not going to be intimidated by an outlaw and his illegally trained human companion!’

‘You should be,’ the Master said. ‘I am not just any “outlaw,” as you put it; I am the  _ Master _ .’ 

The Time Lord’s eyes widened, and gasped.

‘Now.’ The Master stepped forward slowly. ‘Why are you here, and what have you done to this town?’ 

‘I….I….’ the Time Lord’s voice faltered. 

‘Yes….?’ 

‘I have an entire force of Chancellory Guard willing to back me up!’ he cried. ‘You won’t be so smug when they come to save me! I….’ he trailed off. 

The Master looked around. ‘I see,’ he said. ‘And….praytell…. _ where are they, precisely? _ ’ 

The Time Lord’s face fell. 

‘They….don’t know I’m here.’ 

‘ _ Ah _ .’ 

‘Er….you came here without telling anyone….?’ Blair asked. 

‘I….oh Rassilon’s sake, what have I said….’ The Time Lord put his head in his hands. 

‘Well, as no one knows you are here, it is probably the best for you if you tell us what you are  _ doing _ here,’ the Master said, his voice low. 

‘I….’ The Time Lord was frozen in fear; if he hadn’t been trying to hurt everyone, Blair would’ve felt sorry for him. 

The Master raised an eyebrow. ‘Well….?’ 

‘....I was trying to use Taft’s machine for Gallifrey’s plan for this world!’ he whimpered. ‘It went wrong when I turned the power up too high but at least I didn’t kill the entire city!’ 

Blair shuddered at the memory of what the Machine could do. 

The Master narrowed his eyes. ‘You did, did you? And how, praytell, can you know for certain that no one died? It is almost certain there are some human minds on this colony that are too weak to cope with the side effects of the Machine.’ 

‘Well,  _ some _ might have died, but not  _ all _ of them - there’d still be enough for Rassilon to bring under his con -  _ aah! _ ’ 

He yelped abruptly as he was restrained further by what Blair knew was some sort of interdimensional manipulation of the Master’s. He wasn’t  _ quite _ as good at it as one of the other Time Lords she’d met - the Doctor - but then again, it wasn’t his speciality; not in the way the power of the black holes was. 

‘Now. Show us the way to the Taft Machine,’ the Master said quietly. 

‘Yes yes yes yes yes I will just don’t kill me please don’t kill - ‘

‘ _ Silence _ .’ 

His begging dwindled into a whimper. 

‘Good; now  _ show us _ .’ 

*****

The Time Lord led them down several side roads to another alleyway, where a small table stood next to a crumbling building. 

‘It’s there,’ he said, his voice trembling. ‘It’s there, and I….’ Suddenly, he stiffened. ‘It’s  _ there _ , and I’m not going to let  _ anyone _ take it,’ he growled. 

_ Oh no, it’s happening again, _ Blair thought. She could feel the Time Lord pushing at her starry cage, almost breaking free, and she wasn’t sure she could hold onto it much longer. 

She glanced quickly at the Master; he was struggling, too; the strain of the Time Lord trying to escape and the strain of the Machine’s pull simultaneously trying to bend his will. 

….and then the Time Lord broke free of them both, and they stumbled backwards, almost losing their footing. 

‘Keep away from the Machine!’ the Time Lord shouted. The Master tensed to leap forward, but Blair held out a hand to stop him. 

‘Master -  _ no _ \- the Machine is too much for you!’ 

He looked at her, and understanding passed between them. 

Blair brought up one side of her cape and clapped her hands. 

Immediately a glowing sword materialised in thin air, and she caught it. She charged forward and swatted the flat of it at the Time Lord. The flare-up of energy startled him, and he yelped and jumped away. Soon Blair had chased him to the wall on the other side of the street. 

‘I think perhaps it is time to put you somewhere you won’t get in the way,’ the Master said. 

‘Wha….what do you mean….?’ the Time Lord squeaked. 

‘Oh, nothing  _ terrible _ ….although it is fortunate for you I no longer use my powers to  _ kill _ .’ 

‘Wait - what - ‘ 

The Master cupped his hands and focused, then flicked his wrists in the Time Lord’s direction. In seconds, the Time Lord was shrunk down to a size that would be easier to port, and with a wave of one hand, the intruder vanished. 

All was quiet. Blair came up to his side, trailing sword and cape. 

‘What should we do with the Taft Machine?’ she asked. The Master considered for a moment. 

‘I think, perhaps, destroying it is the wisest option.’ 

Blair grinned and nodded. ‘Okay. I’ve got this.’ 

She spun around and sprinted back to the Machine and with a cry, brought the sword down on it  _ hard _ , splitting it straight down the middle. It sparked slightly as the Master walked over to her.

‘Thank you, Blair; it should be safe for me to port now,’ he said, ‘especially now that it is a more manageable size.’ He focused, and soon the Taft Machine had vanished with the wave of a hand as well, joining the Time Lord in the Containery, deep in the heart of the TARDIS. 

‘I hope that’s the last we ever hear of Taft,’ Blair muttered. The Master put a hand on her shoulder. 

‘I am certain it will be, Blair; do not fret. Come.’

‘Wait, what about the people here?’ she asked. 

‘They will wake up eventually, wondering what happened. It is probably for the best that they do not know.’  He took her hand and turned back towards the TARDIS. 

Blair smiled. ‘Where should we go next?’ 

‘To Pochillia,’ he said. ‘We shall add to our tea supply, and then we shall take a holiday somewhere peaceful.’ 

‘That sounds good.’ 

They walked off together towards the sunset, back to their beloved magical timeship. 


End file.
